


you can't miss it, they said

by startofamoment



Category: Brooklyn Nine-Nine (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, F/M, Soulmate-Identifying Timers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-04
Updated: 2017-01-14
Packaged: 2018-09-14 17:12:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,755
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9195611
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/startofamoment/pseuds/startofamoment
Summary: B99 + Soulmate AU: in which Amy’s timer finally hits 0000:00:00:00 – except this happens in the middle of a huge hostage situation involving 14 civilians, 8 criminals, multiple police precincts, a SWAT team, 4 firefighters, and 2 paramedics.





	1. Chapter 1

Amy stares at her timer in disbelief.

A row of black zeroes shine on her wrist, unmoving. For over twenty years, she had been used to seeing the numbers change with each passing second. It’s jarring seeing them completely still for once, and she has a heavy hollow feeling in the pit of her stomach knowing she missed the exact moment her timer stopped ticking. 

She missed her soulmate. She missed her moment.  

And it was entirely her fault, but also not really. 

She had been tossing and turning the night before, glancing at her timer every now and then to double-triple-quadruple check that she was, in fact, going to see her soulmate for the first time in less than 24 hours. She was lucky enough to have the day off and was planning on visiting the Met. While studying Art History in college, she often imagined meeting the man of her dreams in the Modern and Contemporary Art section.

She had barely made it through the Greek and Roman Art gallery when she got the call. The NYPD was looking at a major hostage situation, and all officers across several precincts were being called in. She ran out of the museum with adrenaline pumping through her veins, unaware that her timer had started counting down the final hour.

Looking back and trying to do the math, she couldn’t pinpoint when and where she would have seen her soulmate. When she first arrived at the scene, she found a crazy mess of people ranging from cops waiting for direct orders to paramedics preparing equipment to passersby trying to find out what was going on. Things didn’t get any less crazy when the hostages were finally released and the perps were being brought out in handcuffs and ––  _OH GOD, was her soulmate a criminal?_

She takes a deep breath and considers her options. 

If she tried hard enough, maybe she could make a list of everyone at the scene and contact each person one by one? And then maybe she could ask if their timers hit 0 recently? And if it turns out that none of the officers or civilians is her soulmate, then she would have to try visiting the hostage takers? And if any of them is her soulmate, then maybe she could help them work out a plea deal? And ––  _Yeah, no._

She sighs and figures that it makes sense she would miss her moment while on the job. Maybe her career is her soulmate. That’s probably it. 

* * *

The reality of missing her soulmate gets easier to deal with over time. She keeps a band over her stopped timer and goes months without giving it a second thought. Nobody even asks about it; everyone just assumes that all singletons are still waiting to meet their soulmates. 

Years after she’s transferred to the Nine-Nine is when she has her first actual conversation about timers, soulmates, and moments. 

The squad is all in the break room, celebrating Charles having met Genevieve.

“I was looking at my timer, and there were only 3 and a half minutes on the clock when I got totally sidetracked by the barbecued pork intestines she was having. We were well into our discussion on the multiple ways to cook paella when we both realized our timers had hit 0,” Charles recounts happily, showing off a selfie of him, Genevieve, and a container of interesting-looking grilled meats.  

“Man, Charles, I’m  _so_  happy for you. I’ve still got 482 days, 4 hours, 9 minutes, and 25 seconds until I meet my Mr. or Ms. Right,” Gina drawls, looking wistfully at her own timer.

“I remember when I first saw Sharon. Our moment happened at a farmers market,” Terry says between spoonfuls of mango yogurt. “It’s why Terry  loves farmers markets.”  

Amy’s heart is pounding in her chest. She can barely hear Scully talking about his moment. How does she even begin to explain that she doesn’t know who her soulmate is even if her timer stopped ages ago? They’re obviously expecting her to say  _something_  since everyone is sharing their own experiences. Should she lie? Should she say she hasn’t met him yet? Is anyone going to ask to see her wrist?

She’s halfway to a panic attack when her thoughts are interrupted by Jake chuckling to himself across the table. 

With much prompting from Charles, Jake explains that his moment story isn’t very fun. “My timer hit 0 at this freaking hostage sitch 9 years ago. Never met my soulmate, but I bet she’s probably out there doing awesome things… Or maybe she’s in jail. You never know!”


	2. Chapter 2

Rosa tries to call his bluff. "Aren't timers there so you know exactly when to watch out for your soulmate? I don't buy it, Jake. Destiny doesn't screw people over like that."

"Well, destiny sure screwed me over," Jake mutters, pushing up his jacket sleeve to reveal a timer stopped at _0000:00:00:00_. 

The room is quiet for a moment as everyone stares at his wrist in various states of shock. 

Amy's entire world has turned upside down. Her heart is racing, her palms are sweating, she's sick to her stomach, and ––  _MOTHER OF GOD,_ _JAKE PERALTA IS HER SOULMATE._

She stands up quickly and nearly shouts, "I- I- I HAVE TO USE THE BATHROOM." 

Everyone turns away from Jake to watch her run out of the room. 

"Uh, Santiago looked kind of pale there. Do you think we should go check on her?" Jake asks, hoping to change the topic and not draw further attention to his doomed relationship status. 

"She probably just ate something nasty," Charles muses. "I've been telling her to triple wash her salad greens, especially the pre-packed ones. Now see what she's done to herself. I bet it was the arugula."

Gina clears her throat loudly. "Okay, but can we go back to discussing why I was never informed about this? Jake, you  _know_ , I'm an even better detective than all you plebeians here put together.  _I_ could have found your missing soulmate forever and a day ago."

"THAT'S IT!" Charles exclaims, standing up. "Jakey, we're going to help you find your soulmate."

"Charles, there were like a hundred people there that day," Jake sighs. "It's no use. Let me just die alone like the tragically handsome lone wolf I am." 

"No, Jake. Everyone needs their soulmate! I've only known Genevieve for a day and already I'm feeling happier, stronger, wiser, and overall more amazing. What's a hundred people to the Nine-Nine? You have to let us help you find your soulmate!" Charles pleads before gasping then beaming. "Jake, finding your soulmate makes you feel like the hero in a Die Hard movie." 

Jake jumps up at that. "FINDING MY SOULMATE WILL TURN ME INTO JOHN MCCLANE? Why didn't you say so earlier?! How do we do this soulmate finding thing? Is there like a Find My Soulmate app? Should I try seeing if Yahoo Answers has anything to say about this?" 

Gina grabs her phone and starts scrolling through her contacts. "Did you say the hostage situation happened 9 years ago? I could try to tap into the HNAA to get a full list of people at the scene. Meet me in the briefing room in like 20 minutes, and we'll figure out how to make this search our bitch. Rosa, Terry, you in?" 

Rosa shrugs and nods. "This is better than processing paperwork from yesterday's B&E case. I'm in." 

"I don't know. Captain Holt put me in charge for the day while he's out having meetings at One Police Plaza. Terry's all about being productive, but Terry also loves a good soulmate story," he stops to think. "Alright, I'm in."  

"Gina, aren't you going to ask us if we're on board with this?" Hitchcock points to himself and Scully.

"Also, does anyone know if Amy's going to eat the rest of her salad?" Scully asks, already digging his fork into her lunch. "The croutons are my favorite part of salads, and she's left a ton!" 

"Uhm... How about we put you two on caffeine duty?" Terry suggests.

* * *

20 minutes later, Gina is standing in front of the briefing room with several sheets of paper in hand. The whiteboard is covered in words, numbers, and arrows. Hitchcock and Scully are passing out steaming mugs of coffee. Amy is still nowhere to be seen.

"Listen up, people," Gina announces. "The case involved 8 criminals and 14 hostages. Officers from 3 precincts were called to the scene along with a SWAT team, 4 firefighters, and 2 paramedics. I'm still waiting to receive the list of cops dispatched from one of the precincts, but I should get that within the next hour. How do we want to divvy this up? I've got addresses and telephone numbers for most of these folks – except the perps, who are all still in jail." 

"Give me the hostage takers!" Jake yells, grabbing the info sheet with pictures and names of the perps. "If my soulmate turns out to be a criminal mastermind, I want to be the first to know." 

"I'll take the civilians, firefighters, and paramedics," Charles says, reaching for his set of sheets. "Don't worry, Jakey, we'll find your soulmate!"

Terry and Rosa each get a list of officers from one precinct and divide the members of the SWAT team among themselves. Jake is set to receive details regarding the last precinct once those are in. 

"Alright, everyone. You know what to do," Gina says, looking at each member of the squad. "Gee, this would probably be a whole lot easier if we only focused on the ladies. But if I know Jake, which I do, any of these people could be his soulmate. Contact every single person, y'all!"

With that, they're rushing out to their desks, gearing up and setting off on one of their biggest search missions to date.  

* * *

In the evidence lockup, Amy is crouched in a corner, hyperventilating, spiraling, and trying to get a handle on herself.

How is it that Jake is her soulmate? Jake, who has close to zero respect for authority. Jake, who might honestly be the worst secondary in the unit. Jake, who has terrible handwriting and 70% of the time produces paperwork riddled with spelling and grammatical errors. Jake, who never uses proper punctuation when texting. Jake, who makes the most infuriating "title of your sex tape" jokes that totally push the boundaries of workplace appropriateness. Jake, who eats sugary cereal and orange soda for breakfast. Jake, who memorizes her usual order at every coffee shop and restaurant within a three-mile radius of the precinct. Jake, who always knows how to make her laugh. Jake, who she is somehow always in sync with. Jake, who she's been strangely drawn to since her first day at the Nine-Nine. Jake, her partner. Jake, her best friend. 

The more she thinks about it, the more it all makes sense.

She stands up slowly, a smile creeping on her face.

_Jake is her soulmate._

She runs out of the room only to find an almost empty bullpen. She briefly considers waking Hitchcock and Scully up from their post-lunch naps to ask where everyone went but figures they're all just out working on cases. 

She looks at Jake's empty desk, grins nervously, then pulls out her phone. She thinks about texting or calling him but decides to wait until he gets back to talk to him about it. She waited over 20 years for her timer to hit 0 and then another 9 years after to find out he was her soulmate. She can wait an extra few hours for their moment. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shout out to jormaperalta for helping me come up with the idea for this chapter and to peraltiagoisland for cheering me on throughout my planning/writing process!!


	3. Chapter 3

Rosa pauses in the hallway, taking a moment to check her list of names. She's down to the last member of the Nine-Five present at the fateful scene years ago. The rest of the former SWAT team members and cops she interviewed earlier in the day either had yet to find their soulmates (as evidenced by the non-zero numbers on their wrists) or were already living in destined soulmate bliss (with the stopped timers, sappy love stories, and disgustingly happy photos to prove it).

She gives the door three firm knocks and waits, hoping Det. Lee is home for his day off instead of on vacation. She does have the option of calling him but prefers to talk and examine his timer in person. She's no Amy Santiago when it comes to thoroughness, but she's no Norm Scully either. 

A moment later, a balding man in his fifties gets the door. The image of this person and Jake being soulmates almost makes her laugh out loud. 

The wedding band on Det. Lee's finger tells Rosa what she needs to know, but she continues anyway. She promised Jake she would leave no stone unturned.

"Detective Lee, I'm Rosa Diaz with the Nine-Nine," she says, flashing her badge quickly. "We're conducting a brief investigation, and I'm only going to need a few minutes of your time to ask you some questions. First off, have you met your soulmate?"

The man's eyes widen in what seems to be panic, and he laughs nervously. "Of course I've met my soulmate! Would you like to meet her right now? TINA! HEY TI-"

"That won't be necessary, sir. I just need to see your wrist." 

Det. Lee's starting to sweat. "I injure my wrist frequently, so I keep it bandaged up all the time. It's all a pain in the ass to remove and put back. You'll take another cop for his word, won't you Detective Diaz?" 

Rosa's patience is wearing thin. She just wants to get her part of the search over with and go help out Terry or Charles if they aren't done yet. She's 99% sure Jake would not want direct assistance with his interviews. 

"Sir, I swear I'll be careful and help you rewrap this," she says, unravelling the bandage and tape. The last of the wrap falls, revealing a ticking timer, just as Mr. Lee's wife makes it to the door.

All of three seconds pass before there's very loud, very angry yelling. Not entirely sure what to do, Rosa blurts out an apology then dashes back to the stairwell.

A few minutes later, in the peace and quiet of her car, she calls Gina with an update on her progress.

Gina's back at the Nine-Nine, having locked herself in the records room so she could dig through old files and contact members of the HNAA. She's really taken this Find Jake's Soulmate operation to heart, and she does not want to miss a single person. Her reputation as Ultimate Non-Detective Detective, Divine Queen of All Things Good, and Jake's #1 Best Friend is on the line. 

Since neither Terry nor Charles is finished, Rosa starts heading over to the Seven-Four. For Jake's sake, she hopes the Sarge has had more luck and less crazies.

* * *

Terry's sitting in one of the interrogation rooms of Jake's old precinct, conducting his last interview. None of the SWAT team turned out to be Jake's soulmate, and unsurprisingly no one at the Seven-Four is his soulmate either. Terry pointed out earlier that they could probably skip questioning everyone at this precinct, but Gina was adamant about checking everyone -- just in case. 

When Rosa walks in, the Sarge and a middle-aged female detective are sharing a pint of ice cream, crying, and flipping through a photo album. There's a growing pile of tissues and candy wrappers on the table.

"And this is when Mr. Gonzales and I got married. Manolo wrote his vows himself, and they were so beautiful! Would you like to hear them? I think I have a copy of them here somewhere," Det. Gonzales says, reaching for her wallet.

Rosa's still standing at the entrance of the room, apparently unnoticed for the last few minutes. "NO. We do not want to hear them. Sarge, if you're done, we have to go help Boyle!" 

Terry looks at her, exasperated. "COME ON, ROSA! We all knew Jake's soulmate wasn't going to be here, but I came anyway. At least let me hear Mr. Gonzales' vows! Terry loves love." 

Rosa rolls her eyes, pulls a chair, and picks up one of the plastic spoons. "Alright, but give me some of that ice cream." 

* * *

At the fire department, Rosa and Terry are surprised to find out that Charles still has 5 people on his list.

"What the hell, Boyle! Terry and I both had more people to interview, and we _still_ managed to finish before you! We even took 20 extra minutes to listen to Detective Gonzales talk about the birth of her children!" Rosa says angrily, waving the info sheet in his face.

Terry jumps into sergeant mode, trying to diffuse the situation. "Now, Rosa, I'm sure there's a very logical explanation for this."

"And there is, Sarge, thank you." Charles smirks toward Rosa. "As you'll see with this next firefighter, I've been asking each person a series of carefully crafted questions to decipher a) their compatibility with Jake and most importantly b) whether they are truly worthy of being Jake's soulmate." 

Rosa's fuming, and Terry has to practically hold her back while Charles calls over the next person.

"First question, ma'am, what are your thoughts on Die Hard? And follow up question to that, would you classify Jake Peralta as a McClane or a Gruber?" 

The firefighter looks understandably confused. "I mean I saw Die Hard awhile back with my dad, and I guess I liked it. Who is Jake Peralta though?"

Charles clicks his tongue, flips open his notepad, and jots something down. "Okay, moving on. If you and Jake were at a restaurant, which of the following would you order for him: Coho salmon, chicken fingers, a fresh salad, or NONE OF THE ABOVE BECAUSE JAKE PERALTA IS HIS OWN PERSON AND CAN ORDER FOR HIMSELF!" 

Terry chooses this moment to pick Charles up, throw him over his shoulders, and drive him straight back to the precinct.

Rosa finishes questioning the rest of the people on Charles' list.

* * *

 Jake is tired. 

He's not surprised that they haven't found his soulmate, but he is somewhat disappointed. He wasn't even  _that_ disappointed when he realized he missed his moment nine years ago -- having a terrible father, who happened to be his mom's soulmate but was still very much so absent, kind of took the glory out of the whole destined love thing. But he's disappointed now.

Charles had really convinced him that finding his soulmate would change his life. It wasn't just the John McClane talk, it was seeing how happy Charles had become after meeting Genevieve. Jake didn't exactly consider himself an unhappy guy -- _heck_ , he was probably the happiest person he knew. But if there was a new joy he could discover with meeting one special person, he was all in.

He had heard the news from Gina while driving home from the eight-eight. He was bummed (and slightly relieved) when his soulmate did not turn out to be a prisoner, more bummed when his soulmate wasn't at the eight-eight, and absolutely crushed when he heard no one else had found his soulmate. 

By the time they all regroup, it's late. The bullpen is empty. Scully and Hitchcock had left two thermoses of coffee in the kitchen and had gone in search of New York's best giant cannoli. Amy had already clocked out and gone home for the day. 

Jake looks down, pausing a moment to take a deep breath before looking back up with a small grin on his face. His smile doesn't quite reach his eyes, but no one blames him. "Well, that was a valiant effort, squad. I think we can all sleep well tonight knowing that my soulmate was probably the 79-year-old woman taken as hostage years ago. I heard she died months ago in a knitting-related accident. Do not know the story there and not sure I want to know. May she rest in peace, my one true love."

They all chuckle half-heartedly, offering Jake sad but encouraging smiles, then begin packing their things.

Terry pats Jake's shoulder on his way out. "I'm here if you ever want to talk, man." 

"Same," Rosa says, punching his arm lightly. "Except with more drinking and less talking."

Before Jake can react to either of them, Charles throws his arms around him. "TEN MINUTE HUG!" 

Gina pushes Charles away after a couple seconds and shoos him toward the elevator. 

Despite the failed mission, Jake knows he owes Gina the world for spearheading this search. He's happy knowing they did all they could do. "Thank you," he says quietly, pulling her into an embrace. If she could see his face at that moment, she'd recognize it as the look he gave her after she listened to him cry for four hours post-Roger's departure. 

Gina hums contentedly, pulling away. "Don't thank me yet." 

Jake is confused as he watches her grab a folder from her desk drawer. 

"Chin up, Cinderella. Your fairy godmother has one more thing up her sleeve." She hands over the file. "There was one more officer of the Eight-Eight who was at the scene nine years ago. I didn't give you her details at first because I just didn't think it was possible you could be soulmates. You should probably go find her, unless you're okay with heaving a dead grandma as your true love."

Jake's heart starts to race, and his hands are shaking as he flips the folder open. 

He's met with a photo of a familiar face. She looks a smidge younger, but it's unmistakably her. Her phone number and address are listed, though unnecessary; he's already got her on speed dial and could probably walk to her apartment in his sleep.

It starts out as a question in his head but later comes out as a statement.

Because he understands.

Because he knows.

"It's Amy." 


	4. Chapter 4

Amy's curled up on her couch with a blanket wrapped around her shoulders. A lukewarm half-finished mug of tea sits on her coffee table, abandoned over half an hour ago. There's a notepad on the seat beside her and a number of crumpled paper balls on the ground.

She alternates between clicking her pen every few seconds and tapping it against every nearby surface. 

She's on Idea #5 of her _How To Tell Jake We're Soulmates_  list, and she's having a really hard time trying to top Idea #3: _Persuade Bruce Willis to come to the precinct dressed up as John McClane and have him break the news to Jake before dropping a "yippee-ki-yay, motherfucker" and walking out._

She purses her lips and clicks her pen a few more times then draws a line straight through Idea #3. -- In hindsight, it's probably a tad impractical. It also makes the moment less about her and Jake and more about Jake and John McClane, and she's fairly convinced that Jake would run away with the Die Hard hero in a heartbeat. She would rather not lose her soulmate a second time, _thank you very much_.

Getting through the entire afternoon with Jake gone was a feat in and of itself. -- About two hours after her moment of clarity in the evidence lockup, she started getting antsy. She had been wracking her brain, trying to remember their actual first meeting from nine years ago, and was so distracted that she was getting no work done. She even thought about looking up the case file to see if there was any indication of what Jake was doing on the scene but was promptly thrown out of the records room by Gina. (" _DON'T YOU DARE COME IN HERE! I'm busy helping Jake with this Super Important case, and your suboptimal presence is the last thing I_ _need_.") -- But now that she's struggling to come up with Idea #5 (and also a new and more acceptable Idea #3), she's glad Jake was out for the day.

There's a knock at the door just as she's weighing the pros and cons of spelling out her message to Jake with powdered donuts. It's 8:47 pm, and she isn't expecting anyone, so she takes a second to look through the peephole.

She lets out a little gasp when she sees Jake standing there, carrying a paper bag full of what seems like groceries. 

More on autopilot than anything (because her brain short-circuited at the sight of her newly discovered soulmate), she opens the door. 

"Amy!" He says, a wide grin forming on his face. "Oh good, you look much better than you did earlier. Can I come in? I brought you stuff." 

He's already walking past her before she can respond, and he's unpacking his grocery haul in her kitchen when she finally finds her voice. "Jake, what is all this?" 

"Okay, so I got you some clear broth, jello, bananas, apple sauce, and yogurt," he lists while pointing to each item. His smile falters a bit when he notices the confused look on her face. 

Amy still has no idea what's going on, but she doesn't want to disregard all his efforts. "I see that, but... What's this all for?" 

"Wait, was Yahoo Answers wrong about things you should be eating on an upset stomach? I was pretty sure half these things were what Nana would give me and Gina when we were sick, so I thought that answer was right. Should I have asked Charles for help? Nah, Charles would probably give you some disgustingly bitter medicinal herb soup or something. I probably should have asked Terry. Yeah, the Sarge always seems to know what's best for his kids and --"  

She cuts him off before he can continue rambling. "Jake, I'm not sick. I don't have an upset stomach."

It's his turn to be confused. "But earlier you ran out of the room looking very sick right after I said I had never met my soul --"

And then it dawns on him that she's _known_  since earlier's celebration turned pity party, and he can't tell if he should be worried that her first reaction was to retch in the bathroom or if he should laugh because he legitimately spent the entire afternoon asking strangers to show him their timers. 

Amy's not sure what his silence means, and she still doesn't know whether he would prefer a reveal involving turtles in masks.

But she does know that Jake is here. 

And he brought her a bag full of groceries because he thought she was too sick to take care of herself. 

And he's her  _soulmate_. 

All thoughts of numbered lists and ranked ideas fly out the window as she crosses the space between them, reaches up to caress his cheek, and presses her lips to his.

He's wrapping his arms around her and deepening the kiss when they both get a flash of scenes: beat cops running into each other and hurriedly apologizing as they go their separate ways to find their commanding officers, detectives being introduced as partners, colleagues closing a particularly taxing case, friends trying to best each other by the dartboard, lovers grinning dazedly in bed, newlyweds sharing their first dance, parents waving goodbye as their child gets on the school bus, grandparents rocking their grandchild to sleep.

There's still an overwhelming feeling of joy, wonder, and love when they pull apart.

"How did I miss you?" Amy asks breathlessly, then laughs. "We're terrible detectives, Jake." 

"Uh, did we see the same set of memories? I think we're obviously  _amazing_ cops, who were way too dedicated to their jobs to stop and realize their timers hit 0." 

She rolls her eyes and leans in for another kiss, effectively wiping the smirk off his face. 

* * *

Charles is decorating his blue "I'LL BE YOUR SOUL PAL" cake, Rosa is binge watching Gilmore Girls, Terry is picking up the twins' discarded toys, and Gina is choreographing a dance routine when they get the text from Jake. 

_**Thanks for all your help today, guys! Turns out I did meet my soulmate after all. :D <3** _

The message is followed by a photo of him and Amy, cuddling on her couch, smiling, and holding up their wrists to show off matching stopped timers.

* * *

Amy grabs his phone after he hits send. She raises an eyebrow, mildly impressed. "You use proper punctuation in text?" 

He chuckles and kisses her temple lightly. "For you."

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for all the kudos and comments, everyone! This is my first foray into fic-writing in over a decade, and all your love has gotten me hooked. There may or may not be a spin-off one shot in the works exploring a related headcanon of mine that Holt actually figures out early on that Jake and Amy are soulmates and tries to help them realize this for themselves. Watch out for that in the coming week or so!
> 
> Also: Major props to peraltiagoisland for letting me flood her inbox/chat with random ideas!! She's a gem and y'all should check out her A+ fics and posts.

**Author's Note:**

> Find me on tumblr (@startofamoment) and come chat with me about B99, Jake/Amy, and AUs! ♥


End file.
